Study
WHO Expert Consultation on Rabies: third report
World Health Organization
WHO Technical Report Series, 2018
An international expert consultation reviewing rabies epidemiology, reservoir species, transmission routes, and the principles of post-exposure prophylaxis and elimination programmes.
- Studied in
- Chiroptera, Carnivora
- Sample size
- international expert consensus review of rabies epidemiology and control
Rabies is essentially always fatal once symptoms begin and is essentially always preventable if post-exposure prophylaxis is given promptly. Dogs cause the overwhelming majority of human deaths worldwide; in the Americas and Europe, where dog rabies is largely controlled, bats are the principal remaining wildlife reservoir. Bat bites can be small enough to go unnoticed, so any direct contact is assessed as a possible exposure.
What it means
The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.
How the authors put it
Prompt post-exposure prophylaxis after any possible exposure is the central intervention; risk assessment should be conservative where bats are involved.
How NatureHQ reads it
The two facts that matter to a reader are that this is time-critical and that the wound may be invisible. Everything else — whether prophylaxis is indicated, which schedule, whether immunoglobulin is needed — depends on the country, the species and the circumstances, and NatureHQ does not attempt it. What a nature reference can usefully do is stop someone concluding "it was only a bat, and it barely touched me" and get them to a clinician the same day.
- Guidance is international and general; national protocols differ and are what actually apply.
- Recommendations are periodically revised, so a summary can date.
- Says nothing about rabies status in any particular region, which changes.
What this study is used for on NatureHQ
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Published by: National and international public health agenciesGuidance summarised from national and international public health agencies; consult the agency for your own country.
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